@ARTICLE {LosierCouturierSt-LaurentEtAl2015,
AUTHOR = {Losier, C.L. and Couturier, S. and St-Laurent, M.-H. and Drapeau,
P. and Dussault, C. and Rudolph, T.D. and Brodeur, V. and Merkle, J.A.
and Fortin, D.},
TITLE = {Adjustments in habitat selection to changing availability induce
fitness costs for a threatened ungulate},
JOURNAL = {Journal of Applied Ecology},
YEAR = {2015},
VOLUME = {52},
PAGES = {496-504},
NUMBER = {2},
NOTE = {cited By 0},
ABSTRACT = {Functional responses in habitat selection occur when individuals adjust
their selection of habitat features as a function of the availability
of those features. Functional responses in habitat selection are
generally assumed to be fitness-rewarding tactics and are used to
guide conservation actions. Fitness consequences of functional responses,
however, have rarely been evaluated. Eighty-three caribou were followed
with GPS collars to establish the link between functional responses
in habitat selection and adult female survival, a strong fitness
correlate for caribou. We measured how caribou avoidance of mixed/deciduous
stands and 6- to 20-year-old clear-cuts varied with the proportion
of 6- to 20-year-old clear-cuts within their 100% minimal convex
polygon (MCP), and if these functional responses were linked to survival.
Mixed/deciduous stands and 6- to 20-year-old clear-cuts are risky
for caribou because they are selected by moose, thereby attracting
wolves and increasing predation risk for caribou. Caribou avoided
mixed/deciduous stands, especially when 6- to 20-year-old clear-cuts
comprised a large proportion of their MCP, but this functional response
did not differ between caribou that died and those that survived.
When the proportion of 6-to 20-year-old clear-cuts in the MCP was
low, caribou generally had low odds of occurring near 6- to 20-year-old
clear-cuts. However, when the proportion of clear-cuts in the MCP
was relatively high, caribou that strongly increased their odds of
being near 6- to 20-year-old clear-cuts were generally those that
died. Synthesis and applications. Assessing the fitness consequences
of how animals respond to habitat disturbances is central to wildlife
conservation. We demonstrate that distinct functional responses in
habitat selection involve different mortality risks and that population
dynamics should depend on the frequency of the different tactics
observed within populations. Individuals that persistently select
riskier areas should be important drivers of population decline.
Caribou mortality could be reduced by decreasing the appeal of 6-
to 20-year-old clear-cuts for moose by removing deciduous vegetation
through cleaning, which should reduce the selection of wolves for
these stands. Removing deciduous vegetation should be especially
effective in areas where those clear-cuts comprise a large proportion
of the landscape, because this is where a subset of the caribou population
experiences high mortality rates by selecting 6- to 20-year-old clear-cuts.},
AUTHOR_KEYWORDS = {Boreal forest; Cutovers; Ecological trap; Forest-dwelling caribou;
Habitat selection tactic; Mortality risk; Resource selection function;
Survival},
DOCUMENT_TYPE = {Article},
DOI = {10.1111/1365-2664.12400},
KEYWORDS = {Animalia; Canidae; Rangifer tarandus; Ungulata},
SOURCE = {Scopus},
URL = {http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84924588690&partnerID=40&md5=f19548ec936fa3204ece433ef4ce1db6},
}